Pellaeon Gardens

[Empress Rhiannon Fel]

"Every ruler should have a garden. It's always useful to draw lessons from nature...From a garden one learns to cull the weak and unfit, and to encourage the strong and the vigorous. An inferior bud soon feels the strength of my pinch!...Each receives its proper allotment of space and sunlight, and no more. That's fair, don't you think?"
¯Gilad Pellaeon

The Pellaeon Gardens were the personal garden of Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon, located in the Imperial Headquarters on Bastion. He enjoyed trimming the plants and keeping them orderly, using them as a euphemism for the New Order. However, following the end of the Yuuzhan Vong War, he decided to return to his garden and allow a small measure of anarchy to enter into it. They still existed as of the Sith-Imperial War and were visited by Roan Fel.

[Empress Rhiannon Fel]

From: Rhiannon Fel
The Gardens were supposed to be a peaceful, calming place, but Rhiannon found them to be anything but this morning. While she had intended to meditate on the disturbences she had repeatedly felt through the Force, instead she found herself pacing through the many paths, long black hair swaying with every step and turn. What was it that drove her now? Was it a desire for revenge against those who had killed her family or besmirched the name of the Empire? Was it a desire to serve the people of the Empire, to live up to her father's legacy? Or was it none of those things; was it simply the wish and pressure of the Force that drove her on? How could she know, how could she think, what she really needed right now was someone to talk to. Someone who was used to listening. Someone like...

From: Missionary_Therapon
"Your majesty," Missionary Zakiah Therapon appeared on the path before the Emperess Fel, bowing deep so that her lekku hung limply on either side of her face. "I trust I am not disturbing you?"

From: Rhiannon_Fel
Rhiannon smiled, making a small motion with her hand granting permission for Zakiah to straighten up, then stepped forward, tilting her head slightly as she looked at her oldest friend. "You are most welcome, Missionary Therapon. But tell me, in all honesty, do I look like you are disturbing me?"

From: Missionary_Therapon
"Your agitation is easy enough to see, your majesty, if you do not mind me saying so." The two women came to a bench, the young missionary waiting for her emperess to sit before she took her own seat beside the young human. "What is it that troubles you, my lady? Affairs of state? Memories of your father? Other personal problems?"

From: Rhiannon_Fel
"All that and more, old friend. All that and more." The Emperess spent the next twenty minutes or so explaining her problems, thoughts, and troubles to the missionary, feeling as if a large weight were being taken off her shoulders. Even here in her garden she was not unobserved, and the two women spoke in code, refering to things better kept from the public using signifiers which none but them would understand. Not even Captain Apollo, not even the Jedi Masters they had spent their youth around.

[Imperial Missionary Therapon]

Therapon listened silently, nodding and shaking her head as was necessary, but did not speak until the Emperor was finished speaking, her hands laying flat in her lap. "Have you thought perhaps of returning to the nursery and speaking with the babysitters again? I realize that the head babysitter is no longer there, but perhaps those that are will be able to help you sort out your mind." It was a well coded message, but she had no doubt the meaning would be clear to her Emperor: return to Ossus and seek an audience with the Jedi Council, perhaps to reinforce the knowledge she was the only true heir to the Imperial throne, perhaps to request aid in the investigation into her family's deaths. True with Kassandra Sigal and Master Enar dead she had lost those she had counted on most, but there was still a chance one of the other Masters might see fit to aid her. It was up to Rhiannon, but that was the only suggestion that Therapon could come up with.

[Empress Rhiannon Fel]

"Thank you for your time, Missionary Therapon. Perhaps I shall utilize your idea and take time to visit the nursery again; after all it's been a long time since I've been there." Standing, she gave Zakiah a dismissive nod, then stood and exited the garden, headed back towards her quarters in silence.